Read more about Gardening Design.
Myth: An indoor pet won’t have many health problems.
Fact: When we think of the unexpected, we instantly think of accidents. However, over 75% of all claims are for illnesses and not accidents. Research shows that indoor pets are no less susceptible to these illnesses.
Myth: I should wait until my pet is older to purchase pet insurance.
Fact: Young pets are like babies and toddlers - they lack full coordination. They are more likely to experience injuries, or get into trouble. They lack the perception and judgment that comes from experience, and they are so small they don’t know when they’re underfoot. It’s always better to enroll them when they’re young, especially before pre-existing conditions develop, or accidents and illnesses occur.
Myth: Instead of pet insurance, I can just start saving now for my pet’s illness or accident.
Fact: The intention is right, but if an emergency occurs in the next few months and you’ve only saved a few dollars, you won’t have the money needed for treatments or surgery. Most people aren’t prepared for the actual cost of veterinary emergency care, or adequately prepared to put aside that much money at one time.
Myth: Pet insurance is much more expensive than my health insurance.
Fact: Pet insurance is actually much less expensive than human health insurance. Human health insurance plans are really only providing you with extended health care benefits. As employers typically pay 50% - 100% of an employee’s extended health insurance coverage, we are unaware of the real costs associated with our health care.
Myth: There’s no such thing as ‘preventive care’ coverage.
Fact: Petplan offers pet parents the choice of selecting a plan that includes preventive care along with accident and illness coverage or a plan that provides only accident and illness coverage. Either option is a great decision - it really depends on you and your pet.
If you regularly schedule and complete 4 or 5 of the preventive care treatments outlined, then it makes good financial sense to enroll in our Champion plan for your cat or dog. This would allow you to budget all of your pet’s ongoing health care costs through your insurance plan on a scheduled basis and get the added benefits of accident and illness coverage.
Myth: I should wait to get pet health insurance until I discuss it with my family.
Fact: For example, Petplan offers a 10-day money-back guarantee, so it pays to enroll now and get your waiting periods started. You’re covered for accidents in just 48 hours, and you have 10 days to discuss it with your family and be sure about the plan you chose.
May 30th, 2006
Read more about Tourism in Romania.
If you decide that you have neither the time, inclination or physical ability to groom your dog, there are dozens of professional groomers who can do the job.
Selection of a groomer should be done with at least as much care as choice of a barber or hair stylist, for you must be pleased with the results of the “haircut” and the dog must be treated with care while at the shop.
Many veterinarians have incorporated grooming into their clinics, so you may start there. If your veterinarian is not associated with a groomer, he may have a list of recommended groomers. Other sources of recommendations include friends who own pets, boarding kennels that don’t have their own grooming service, pet supply stores, shelters, and purebred breeders.
If you own a Poodle or a terrier, the selection may be a bit more difficult, for these breeds have special grooming requirements that take more time and expertise.
After getting some recommendations, make a few telephone calls and ask questions about services and costs, pick-up and delivery, and use of tranquilizers to calm the dog. Most groomers will not use tranquilizers; however they will handle a dog that has been tranquilized by the veterinarian or owner if they know that the drug has been given. If your dog is geriatric or has a chronic medical problem, ask about special handling.
Visit the groomers who answered your questions without the dog. Make sure the shop is well-lit, that the groomer and assistants handle the dogs gently, that old or arthritic dogs are treated with special consideration, and that the shampoos and flea and tick products meet your needs.
Grooming is a skilled trade that takes years of perfecting to get right. There are the five basic clips - body contour, hand scissoring (poodle, bichon), the bladed body/fuller leg (schnauzer), short-legged terrier (westie, cairn terrier, scottie), long-legged terrier (wire fox, airdale), and sporting clip (cocker, springer). And then there are the myriad variations on these themes that make up both the extreme end (show clips), to the casual end (pet and so-called “puppy” clips).
The groomer must be skilled with both shear and clipper blade, dog handling, nail trimming, dematting tools, body washing and, of course, blowdrying techniques. She must be able to quickly analyze a pet’s skin and coat condition to select the proper shampoo and conditioner. There are as many kinds of treatments for dogs as their are for your own hair - from hypoallergenic oatmeal brands, to medicated dandruff shampoos, to those designed to brighten white fur or deodorize strong musky dog odors. She must be able to assess the condition of mats in the fur and recommend a proper cut to work with the owner’s own daily care regime.
Groomers can help an owner with questions about proper canine nutrition (a poor diet shows up on the skin first), show how to properly brush out the coat, and even help the owner develop a proper toothbrushing routine for their favorite furry friend.
Since the groomer works intimately with each dog over a series of hours, they can alert the owners to changes in the dog’s behaviours and body. Groomers might be the first to notice an oozing sore which might require a vet’s attention, cut a dew claw before it can grow around and into the footpad, note changes in warts and old wounds, and pull out thorns from doggie toes that could have become staph infections in time.
A really good groomer will also try to ensure your dog has a nice day at the salon. Being away from their owners can be stressful for pooches, and not every dog enjoys a good bath and blowout. They might be foot-shy, which makes clipping nails problematic. Head-shy dogs don’t like clippers or shears near their faces. It’s the groomer’s job to help the dog feel comfortable with the process, by using warm water, a gentle but firm hand, and soothing words through the process.
Many dogs come to enjoy being groomed. After all, they ARE being lavished with individual attention, something all canines crave. If an owner uses the same groomer each time, so much the better for the dog, who develops a bond with their own personal “hairdresser”.
Dogs who are clean, dry and looking good always know it. They act happier, more light and alert, than when they arrive. When the pet parent arrives to pick up their “child”, it’s always very exciting and rewarding - the dog is happy to see their family, be smelled and held and fawned over.
May 28th, 2006
Read more about Healthy Food Tips.
The best training equipment in the world is of little use if your training techniques are not appropriate for you or your dog, and if the relationship between you and your dog needs some work.
When selecting training equipment, you need to consider some factors:
1. Does the equipment allow for quiet signals easily perceived by the dog?
For the dog to perceive a signal from you, he must feel it, hear it, or see it. Most training equipment relies upon touch and therefore upon the dog’s physical sensitivity. Touch sensitivity can vary from breed to breed, individual to individual dog, as well as being highly dependent upon the situation. A calm dog at home may yelp in anguish if you so much as step on a toe, but in an excited state feel none of the leash signals you send. Be sure to choose equipment that your dog actually perceives as information. This may require several equipment choices depending upon the activity and/or situation.
As a predator, the dog is “hard wired” to react quickly to movement. The canine eye actually contains more of the components that detect movement than does the human eye. Beware of any equipment which necessitates large hand or body movements in order to be effective. Your dog’s brain will have to sort out that movement before it can work on figuring out what you were trying to communicate.
2. Does the equipment achieve the desired results?
If your dog continues to pull, ignore signals, choke himself or tune you out, you may need to switch equipment, as well as examine your handling practices and training method - you are not achieving your desired results.
While this may seem like common sense, it is astounding how many handlers continue to use equipment that frustrates them and/or the dog. By the same token, handlers often stick with a training methodology that is not effective for the dog, the handler or both.
Keep in mind the wonderful saying: “The response you get is the communication you gave.” Forget intentions - look at reality, and if you are not achieving the desired results, do something else!
3. What effect does the equipment have on you?
While it is currently in vogue to train with thick leather leads, the mere act of holding such a lead can limit your ability to use your hands and arms in refined, subtle ways, much as a thick child’s crayon inhibits fine penmanship. Remember that such heavy leads are popular because a very forceful correction can be given without hurting your hands, and without losing the full force of the correction to the dog. There are other ways to train. Softness and subtle in your lead signals is possible only when you can utilize fine motor control - instead of heavy, large movements, you can use fluttering or pulsing signals that originate with just a twitch of a finger or two. Such signals are welcomed, heard and understood by the dog.
Beyond limiting your fine motor control, holding a thick lead and/or holding your hand(s) in a clenched fist - a typical “training” position which readies you to give “corrections” - also affects your breathing. To test this for yourself, simply sit for a moment with your hands soft and open on your lap or at your sides. Pay attention to your breathing for a few breaths. Now, hold your hand(s) in your typical training position as if you had a lead in your hands - hold your imaginary lead with your usual grip. Now check your breathing. What breathing??!!! Check a little further - you may find tension in your jaw, neck and/or shoulders as well. How does this affect your emotional state? Do you feel calm, relaxed or focused? Or do you feel increasingly anxious or tense - two normal responses to interfering with your breathing? Imagine how this affects your training on many levels.
Still holding your imaginary lead, soften your hands so that your fingers are light and soft, as if you were attempting to contain a butterfly within your hand. How does this affect your breathing? Check the tension in your jaw - it should be disappearing as you relax your hands.
Your choice of equipment, as well as how you use that equipment, will have profound effects on your emotions, your patience and the results you get in your training session. Choose wisely, and with an awareness of the impact the equipment will have on both ends of the lead.
Can you be subtle?
One of the hallmarks of a novice in any activity is the rather awkward, overly large use of signals and movements. Compare the movements of someone just learning to ride a horse with the almost imperceptible movements and cues of the Olympic rider, or the lead handling of a novice handler with an experienced trainer. Unfortunately, these two images are not necessarily equal examples. In the first case, a beginning rider flails around, using large hand movements to “steer” their horse in very basic ways, while the Olympic level rider may achieve incredibly sophisticated responses with signals so subtle as to be virtually undetectable. The horse and rider seem to dance together in some pre-agreed fashion.
In the second example, you will not see too much of a difference between the typical novice handler and the experienced dog trainer in terms of subtlety. Oh, the corrections may be given with more precision and power, and no one ends up being wrapped up in the lead, but subtlety is not a quality that is taught or even sought by experienced trainers. I remember watching some of the top obedience competitors at a Gaines Regional and being surprised that at such a level of experience, there were still gross movements and forceful corrections. The only thing that set the novices apart from the “pros” was timing. The techniques were not refined to any great degree.
Mastery of any skill should include a progressive degree of subtlety. I feel this is especially true when our partners are dogs - the masters of subtle communications. Do yourself and your dog a favor - see how subtle you can get, and still achieve results. You may surprise yourself when a twitch of a finger is sufficient to “correct” a dog, or when a slight head turn is enough to give a signal across the room. Such subtlety requires precision and clarity in your signals, respect for and trust in the dog’s willingness to respond, and mastery of your self.
Is it worth it? You bet. For the casual onlooker, subtlety of signal adds an air of magic to all that you and your dog do together. For yourself, you may find, as I do, that there is a genuine joy in both giving and receiving the kind of willing and mutual attentiveness that is the hallmark of a great team.
May 24th, 2006
Read more about Spaniel Training.
Good table that will mount a 48 inch grooming arm and give access to all of the dog. The square arms are superior to the round ones
Oster home animal clipper from Care a lot. Any other clipper requires a #10 or 1.5mm or Medium blade designation.
Black and Decker Wizard with Ѕ inch sanding drums, 100 grit from Home Depot
I personally like 80 grit, particularly for larger nails.
Sheddr’ comb, large loop
4 inch slicker brush
Mars fine stripping comb
7-8 inch combo comb Fine/Medium
Ice on Ice conditioner.
30/inch thinning shears
May 24th, 2006